On This Day
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What Happened in 2020

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Major Events

  • Burial of a coronavirus victim in Iran during the COVID-19 pandemic
    COVID-19 Pandemic
    Jan 23 China locks down the city of Wuhan and its 9 million people, in a belated but ultimately successful effort to control the city's COVID-19 epidemic
  • Mar 11 COVID-19 declared a pandemic by the head of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, after 121,564 cases worldwide and 4,373 deaths
  • Mar 24 China's Hubei province, the original center of the COVID-19 outbreak eases restrictions on travel after a nearly two-month lockdown
  • Mar 24 Indian PM Narendra Modi orders a 21 day lockdown for world's second most populous country of 1.3 billion people to deal with COVID-19
  • Apr 2 Record 6.6 million Americans filed claims for unemployment in last week according to the US Department of Labor, 10 million over 2 weeks
  • May 25 Video of African American George Floyd's arrest and murder while restrained in Minneapolis police custody shows he was pinned to the ground by police officer Derek Chauvin's knee for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, ignites widespread condemnation and nationwide protests
  • Jun 20 Highest-ever temperature recorded in the Arctic circle, 38C (100F) in Verkhoyansk, Siberia
  • Aug 9 Disputed Belarusian presidential election sees long time dictator Alexander Lukashenko officially win 80% of the votes but unofficially lose 60-70% of the votes to main opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. Sparks widespread protests in Belarus and international condemnation.
  • Sep 10 California's August Complex wildfire becomes largest recorded in state history at 471,000 acres (736 square miles)
  • Sep 14 Astronomers report possible sign of life on Venus, after detecting phosphine in planets's atmosphere by telescope [1]
  • Oct 5 US President Donald Trump leaves Walter Reed National Military Medical Center while still infectious with COVID-19 and returns to the White House
  • Oct 20 US Justice Department sues Google for illegal monopoly over search and search advertising
  • Nov 7 Former Vice-President Joe Biden declared the winner of the US Presidential race, four days after the US election, defeating sitting President Donald Trump
  • Nov 9 Drugmakers BioNTech and Pfizer announce their COVID-19 vaccine to be over 90% effective in a first look at the results from their phase 3 trial involving nearly 44,000 people
  • More 2020 Events

2020 in Film & TV

  • Aug 21 Korean pop group BTS releases single "Dynamite", becomes 1st video to be watched more than 100 million times in 24 hours on YouTube
  • Nov 2 Baby Shark by Pinkfong becomes the most-watched video on YouTube with over 7.04 billion views

2020 in Music

  • Nov 13 Kylie Minogue becomes the first woman to top the UK album chart over five consecutive decades with "Disco"

2020 in Sport

  • Mar 12 NHL announces the pausing of the 2019-20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Mar 24 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzō Abe announces postponement of Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games until summer of 2021 because of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic
  • Jul 6 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes agrees to the largest contract for an athlete in sports history, inking a 12-year deal that could end up being worth US$503 million
  • Nov 15 British Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton clinches 4th straight and record equalling 7th F1 World Drivers C'ship by winning Turkish GP at Intercity Istanbul Park, Tuzla

Did You Know?

Scientists identify the first animal that doesn't need oxygen to breathe - a tiny parasite living in salmon tissue, reported in journal PNAS

February 24, 2020

Fun Fact About 2020

Chicago declared the 'rattiest city' in America for the sixth year in a row by pest control service Orkin

October 17, 2020

Who Died in 2020

Actors Who Died in 2020

Musicians Who Died in 2020

Athletes Who Died in 2020


More 2020 Deaths

Famous Weddings in 2020

  • Jan 20 American former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow (32) weds South African Miss Universe 2017 Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters (24) in Cape Town, South Africa
  • Jun 18 Actress Raven-Symoné marries Miranda Maday
  • Jul 17 England's Princess Beatrice marries Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi at Windsor Castle

Famous Divorces in 2020

  • Jan 20 Australian actor Liam Hemsworth and American singer Miley Cyrus divorce after 1 year of marriage
  • Mar 10 American actress and TV host Niecy Nash (50) divorces American electrical engineer Jay Tucker after over 8 years of marriage
  • Aug 13 Actor Ewan McGregor and production designer Eve Mavrakis divorce after 25 years

More 2020 Weddings

Famous People in 2020



World Leaders in 2020

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